


Before the Street Lights Turn On

by screamoffkey



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, slowish burn, tumblr saw it first
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-02
Updated: 2018-08-07
Packaged: 2019-06-20 15:06:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15536898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/screamoffkey/pseuds/screamoffkey
Summary: Cyrus stays out just a little past curfew.





	1. you have my heart just take a hold of it

**Author's Note:**

> literally just wholesome tyrus fluff that takes place immediately after Buffy In a Bottle.
> 
> This work is inspired by the song Starlight by Ollie. The link is in the end notes, but I recommend you listen while you read!

Cyrus had started rambling, per usual. He tended to get this way whenever he was excited, and had been talking since he and TJ had left the gym, all the way until they had found themselves sitting on the pair of swings they both knew a little too well. He was going on and on about the adrenaline rushing through his veins, while a sandy-haired boy tried his best to keep up with the word vomit pouring out of his shorter friend’s mouth. TJ liked science a lot more than he liked math, but when Cyrus mentioned something about a “parasympathetic” whatever, he finally tuned out. Instead he swung silently on the seat beside the boy, and watched intently as Cyrus gesture wildly, with fire sparkling behind deep brown eyes. He loved when Cyrus got worked up like this; it was captivating.

“Cyrus, relax. It was just a somersault.” TJ chuckled.

“TJ, I don't think you don’t understand how big of a deal this is! I danced with danger; looked death in the eye, and came out the victor!” He he started dramatically, earning a snort and an eye roll from the basketball star.

“And it’s because of you, you know. The somersault... and grabbing the muffin, and swinging high. I’d never be able to do anything like that if you weren’t around.”

TJ felt heat rising to his cheeks. There was something about the sincerity, different than the dramatic tone Cyrus had been using just a few seconds ago, that made TJ’s heart race a little faster. Something about the way Cyrus looked into his eyes when he spoke made TJ feel like the important guy on earth. It was how he felt when he playing basketball (before Buffy had joined the team, of course.) It was a feeling he didn’t get to experience a lot.

“You could have done any of those things on your own, Cyrus. You just needed a little _push_ ,” he said while giving Cyrus a playful shove on the back, causing the brown haired boy to swing a little higher. He was rewarded with a little squeal that escaped Cyrus’ lips.

“No fair, that was a sneak attack!” Cyrus pouted.

“My bad, Somersault.” TJ replied, with a signature smirk dancing on his lips as heard the new nickname out loud.

They swung in silence for a few seconds, watching the sun go down. Usually, Cyrus tended to fill silences immediately, but he let this one sit for a bit. TJ glanced over at the boy, who had a unfamiliar look on his face. He was watching the sunset in front of him, and TJ noticed a little bit of the golden light reflected in Cyrus’ eyes. He looked… content, about something. He always felt like Cyrus was always three steps ahead of him mentally, so he had no clue what was going on in his friend's head.

Come to think of it, as of lately, he wasn't even too sure what was going on in his own. He didn't know why he had decided to walk into The Spoon before work, or why he'd been so eager to apologize to a trash can, or why every time he'd looked at Cyrus Goodman today his stomach decided it was time to start practicing somersaults of its own. He didn't want to think about it. Whenever he thought too much about stuff he didn't understand, he always got frustrated, and Underdog was the last person he wanted to take his frustration out on.

Maybe his gaze lingered a few seconds too long, because Cyrus looked over at him with furrowed brows. His eyes met TJ’s, and TJ Kippen’s stomach started doing The Thing again. There was a bit of a pause, and then Cyrus started speaking.

“Thanks for apologizing to Time Capsule Buffy,” he said gently, with a soft smile. “I know she looks like a total Tin Man, but I'm sure she has a heart somewhere in there.

A blank stare from TJ.

“It’s a Wizard of Oz reference,” Cyrus quipped, getting a mouthed ‘Ohh’ in response from TJ. 

Green eyes broke contact from the soft brown eyes, and fixed themselves on the gym shoes that were were kicking wood chips underneath them.

“I’m sorry I didn’t apologize to Actual Buffy when she was still here… I’m, uh, not too good at admitting when I’m wrong.”

TJ winced a little as he spoke. “By the time I realized I was, it was too late. I was in too deep; plus, she already hated me.” He laughed wryly.

“Well, Tin Man Buffy is a start. And, if I ever get to hear from real Buffy again, I’ll be sure to let her know how you feel.”

To that, the pair both chuckled a little.

They spent the next few minutes in silence, as the darkness started to settle in. Both of them had stopped swinging at this point, and were resting motionless at the low point of their pendulums. As if waiting for a push to move them upwards.

Next to each other on the swings, their hands dangled close enough they grazed each other. TJ thought back to their walk from The Spoon, where Cyrus and been close enough to him that their hands had grazed. It had felt so natural to be by his side, like the two boys just fit together perfectly. He remembered how he had wrapped his arm around Cyrus, and swore that for a second the smaller boy had leaned into his touch. He smiled to himself about how he was originally going to go in for a hug, but Cyrus thought it would be “manlier” to chest bump. He looked over to the boy that was somersaulting around his head, and put on a confident smirk. Cyrus looked back, confused but grinning, and let his hand brush against the older boy’s. TJ thought he saw a bit of a blush, but it was too dark to be certain. He searched the boys face for a sign of what he was supposed to do next, and brushed his index finger along the back of Cyrus’ palm.

Then, the street lights clicked on, on an automatic timer, dotting the pavement of the road nearby with golden light. Cyrus squinted at the sudden increase in light.

“And… that’s curfew.” Cyrus chuckled, standing up from the swing, lingering a bit before starting to walk off. “I'm already late, so I have to get going. I’ll see you around?”

“Of course. See ya, Somersault.” Tj replied with a waved and a smirk.

TJ couldn't help but feel… disappointed. Like, something should have happened, but it didn't. He hadn't actually pieced together that he had fallen for Cyrus Goodman. Not yet anyways. And, a few days later when he finally realized it, he would mentally kick himself that he didn't hold his hand when it was only centimeters away from his. 

As always, he was just a little too late. But now, he’s in _way_ too deep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this! I have a few more Tyrus fics on tumblr that I'm going to gradually transfer over to AO3. Check it out if you want!: screamoffkey.tumblr.com 
> 
> Starlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxBCYi55C5g&feature=youtu.be


	2. you make this small town feel like home again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place immediately after Keep a Lid on It. Again, this work and chapter titles are inspired by the song Starlight by Ollie.

It was an hour until curfew, and Cyrus never came home late. Usually, if he was cutting it this close, he would make a beeline straight home. But, today felt different, today _he_ felt different.

He had spent the whole night with Buffy, catching her up on the gossip she had missed since she went AWOL (a military pun Cyrus had made no less than a dozen times during the night.) He was also trying to pry out a confirmation of who her crush was, but Buffy would neither confirm nor deny any of his suspicious guesses. In turn, he got his fair share of interrogation on the whole “over Jonah” situation. Buffy had seemed beyond skeptical, but after around an hour of _are you sure? It’s ok if you’re not ’s_ , she finally acquiesced. After hours together, he finally started to head home, Jonah Beck on his mind - but for an entirely different reason than usual.

You see, getting over Jonah was weird for Cyrus, because for the past year, everything was defined in terms of Jonah Beck. _This was the park where Jonah practiced frisbee, that was the jacket Cyrus wore when Jonah first hugged him, and those were the Heart Eyes that Jonah reserved exclusively for Andi._ Every place, a stadium, a suit store, a particularly dangerous hill, all had ‘Jonah’ written all over them. But, as his crush began to fade, he started to forget the details, his memories of the minutia of Jonah Beck blurring together into a collective past tense. It was interesting to become reacquainted with a town that was once defined in his mind by Jonah. Everything looked brand new, and Cyrus loved basking in the feeling of a fresh start.

So, he decided to take the time to explore.

It was as he was meandering through Shadyside at night, occasionally checking his phone to make sure he still had time to get home (and keeping up with the endless chatter from his group chat with Andi and Buffy), that he caught sight of a boy practicing free throws on the basketball court of a neighborhood he’d never really been to before. He couldn’t stop a smile from spreading across his face as he identified the lone athlete as TJ.

“If it isn’t the aptly nicknamed Basketball Guy!”

TJ caught his ball mid-dribble, and pivoted on a heel to face the sound of the familiar voice. 

“Hey!” He exclaimed. With that infamous smirk on his face, he pointed towards a nearby streetlight and teased, “The clock’s about to strike midnight, you better get going, Cinderella.”

“You’ve been waiting to use that one, I see.” Cyrus chuckled as he contemplated the new nickname for a brief moment.

“You know, I can never tell if these nicknames are endearing or insulting.” Cyrus smiled broadly and went to meet his friend on the court. “I'm choosing go with endearing.”

“As you wish, Princess.” TJ playfully scoffed.

As Cyrus got closer, he couldn’t help but notice the way TJ’s shoulders always relaxed around him. It was like he could visibly see “Scary Basketball Guy” melt away into the boy he knew. The lighting in the eyes of the athlete softened to candlelight, and his stern Game Face he kept on at all times dissolved into a warm grin. A part of him wished that other people could see this side of TJ, but he also cherished the feeling that it was a secret that only Cyrus (and the gaggle of kids at the gym) knew about.

“So, why are you out here playing basketball so late at night… other than to look cool and brooding, I mean.”

“Can’t spend every night on the swing sets can I?” The tall boy quipped. “And shooting free throws helps me clear my head, I guess.”

“Fair enough.”

“What about you? You aren’t usually on this side of town.”

“Just looking for a change of pace.” He said, as we plopped down on the nearest bench to watch TJ shoot hoops.

There was a soft silence. TJ looked down at the ball in his hands, twisting it around in his hands slightly before looking back up at Cyrus, and meeting the brown-eyed boy’s gaze with a smirk. Suddenly, he bounce-passed the ball to the non-athlete, who shrieked as he scrambled to catch the ball. Still gasping for air after the surprise attack, Cyrus managed to blurt “What do you expect me to _do with this!?_ ”

A thoroughly amused TJ tried to best to keep from laughing at his friend’s struggle, “Shoot your shot, Underdog.” gesturing with his head towards the basket

“TJ, I think I’ve made it abundantly clear that I’m not able to do that.”

“Come over here, I’ll give you some pointers.” He motioned adamantly for the hesitant boy to step onto the court from the sidelines. 

In the next few moments, an obstinate Cyrus found himself being dragged to the free throw line by the taller boy. And then, he found his face turning red as TJ grabbed both of his arms from behind and used them to mime the motions of shooting a basket with him. He was trying to listen to TJ talk about aiming for the top right corner, but he was distracted. With TJ’s chest was pressed into his back, Cyrus could feel his friend’s heart beating - or more correctly, _racing_. 

It reminded him of his conversation with Buffy hours before: it was definitely more of a “ _badumbadumbadum_ ” than a “ _badum badum badum._ ” 

He tried to shrug it off, there was no way _he_ was making _TJ Kippen’s_ heart beat faster, but the more TJ explained the motions, the less his attention was on the words being said, and the more it was on the mile-a-minute metronome that was literally sending shivers down his spine. All too soon, TJ pulled his touch away from Cyrus. He spun Cyrus around and clasped two strong hands on Cyrus’ slim shoulders, and confident green eyes met the nervous resistance painted in the brown. 

“You ready?” TJ asked, placing a basketball firmly in Cyrus’ hands.

“Don’t laugh.” Cyrus pleaded, as he hesitantly accepted the worn down basketball.

He turned to face the basket, looming over him in the starry night sky. It stood in isolation on the court, nothing else in his field of view besides the rusty red hoop. It seemed so menacing, so unachievable, that it felt dizzying to focus on it. He scrunched his eyes shut, and hoped for the best as he released the ball from his hands.

He peaked one eye open, then the other in wide-eyed confusion as he watched the shot, _his shot_ , swish through the hoop. Nothing but net. He spun around to see the older boy looking at him with a goofy smile plastered on his face. The thing that Cyrus thought was weird was that he didn’t look the least bit surprised. He looked like he knew that Cyrus could do this the whole time. His friend always put so much blind faith in him, for better or worse, and the brilliantly proud smile on TJ’s face made Cyrus feel like he had found the secrets of the universe.

And that’s when his own heart started racing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starlight by Ollie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxBCYi55C5g&feature=youtu.be


	3. you fill my aching heart with wonder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place right after chapter 2. It was originally just a part of chapter two that I posted separately to tumblr for formats sake, but I decided to rewrite it amd flesh it out a bit more, because tbh it wasn't great before.

_And that’s when his own heart started racing._

Cyrus didn’t really think of himself as a hopeless romantic, at least he tried his best not to be. He had really thought he had put this whole crush thing behind him for now. But even in the darkness, even though he could barely make out the face of the boy standing a few feet away from him, he knew he was starting to feel _something_ for TJ Kippen, something that felt a little like a crush. Too excited about the basket to stress out about it, right now all Cyrus could do was beam at his friend who still had that proud smile smeared on his face.

After a few more seconds of the happiest staring contest Cyrus had ever been a part of, TJ ran over and pulled Cyrus into a hug, wrapping his arms around a laughing Cyrus and pulling him up so that only his tiptoes still had contact with the ground. He held him for what was probably just a second too long to be normal, but felt like hours too short for Cyrus.

“Look at you, Underdog!” TJ smirked, as he pulled back. “Wanna go two-for-two?”  
“I think I’ll quit while I’m ahead” Cyrus chuckled, trying to sneak back to the safety of the bench.

They eventually settled on Cyrus tossing rebounds back to TJ from behind the hoop as they talked, about science class, and movies, and about TJ going to high school next year, Cyrus always pausing to conversation to marvel in wonder at exactly how amazing TJ was at basketball, making more than one comparison to Troy Bolton along the way. He knew it was getting pretty late, and he had a long walk back home, but he couldn’t help himself. Something about watching play basketball when it isn't a competition, about the way he eyes flicked between Cyrus and the net as they talked, about that smirk he gave Cyrus when he tried to do some sort of hilariously complex trick shot (and inevitably failed) made Cyrus stay put.

“You know, I feel so traitorous to Buffy for saying this out loud, but you really are great at basketball.” an astounded Cyrus confided. He watched heat rush to TJ’s face, as he sputtered a quiet thanks.

“Oh! She’s moving back into the county, you know! Only an hour away. I spent all day with her today.” Cyrus paused, putting on a faux-serious expression. “If you guys ever play against each other, I will definitely _not_ be at that game,” earning a snort from the boy on the court. 

“Did you tell her about my, uh, time capsule… thing?”

“I did. She said she’ll have to ‘see it to believe it.’” Cyrus shrugged.

“I’ll work on it. What else did you guys do?” as he dribbled aimlessly, listening.

And then Cyrus found himself rambling again, recounting how great his day was. He talked about how they went to The Spoon three separate times that day, how everything felt like it made sense again; he practically gave a minute by minute recount of the day’s events. Cyrus didn’t know what it was about TJ, but the way the sandy-haired boy looked at him when he was listening made him feel like he could say anything to him. He felt so comfortable around his friend that it led him to ramble on many occasions. 

And that’s how Cyrus accidentally told TJ that he’d gotten over his crush on Jonah Beck. That TJ never knew he had.

TJ choked on air. And Cyrus suddenly realized what he just said.

“OhmygodIdidnotmeanthatimisspoke-” Cyrus started, but was cut off by TJ motioning for him to hold on for a second.

Cyrus stood in horror as TJ caught his breath.

“Please. _Please._ Can we just forget I ever said anything?” Cyrus begged.

Walking off the court to put a supportive hand on his friend’s shoulder, TJ said “Listen Cyrus, we’re cool no matter who you liked... Or like. You know that, right?”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

There was a sort of awkward hitch in the conversation, then

"So, guys, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. That's cool."

Cyrus exhaled a sigh of relief. He gave himself a moment to calm down. Internally, he felt a weight off of his chest. He knew he was going to come out to TJ at some point, but he didn’t know how the jock would handle it. In retrospect, he felt like he should have figured. The TJ in front of him, the one that was supportive and understanding, was the real TJ Kippen. The hostile jerk that he presented himself as was a role he played, and he played it so well sometimes Cyrus had to remember that it wasn’t actually him.

After a long silence before either of the pair spoke again. Looking down at the asphalt, Cyrus softly started.

“You really are like Troy Bolton.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re not just a good basketball player TJ, you’re a pretty good actor.”

TJ’s face flushed, as Cyrus watched him try to think of something to say. After a moment, looking away from Cyrus, he asked simply, 

“So, You know?” 

Cyrus laughed out softly, with his eyebrows knit in confusion. “What? That you act like a jerk, but you have a heart of gold. Yeah, TJ, I think I figured that one out.” He didn’t really think it was a secret, not one that TJ was keeping from Cyrus at least

“No, not that.” TJ chuckled, “I guess I thought you knew somehow.”

“What do you mean?” Cyrus took a curious step closer, and TJ immediately let the basketball drop to the floor to let him close the space. He was looking into those green eyes, and trying to crack the puzzle. They were only a few inches apart. The stars were just bright enough that he could see TJ blushing in the darkness. He held his breath and waited expectantly as he looked up at the the taller boy’s expression, trying to figure out what he was trying to say.

It all made sense when he felt a hand find its way into his.

“I’ve been acting about a lot of things, Cyrus.”

Giving the hand he was holding a soft squeeze, Cyrus glanced from TJ’s nervous eyes, to his lips, and back again, feeling something odd inside of him, and impulse almost entirely beyond his control.

And then the streetlights clicked on, and TJ jerked away with surprise. The glittering gold lamps that surrounded the basketball court like a spotlight on the two boys standing together.

“I guess you have to go, then? Right, Cinderella?” He laughed, with the softest touch of disappointment painted into his voice.

“I guess I do.” Cyrus said.

Before he turned to go, however, he leaned in and gave TJ a gentle kiss, under the warm glow of the streetlight, and let TJ wrap an arm around his waist. He put a hand on the boy’s chest, and he felt the racing heartbeat that sent shivers down his back. He felt the clarity that he had been waiting for for years the moment their lips touched, _like everything finally made sense for once._ When his eyes fluttered open, Cyrus lingered for just a moment, captivated by that brilliant smile on TJ’s face. He turned and started rushing to get home before his mom started to panic, leaving a blushing TJ standing completely still under the streetlight.

The jog home was weird for Cyrus, because everything in his town felt completely brand new. Every familiar street corner, every store, every hill felt completely unmarked. That is, until he passed the swing set. He almost had to stop and stare at the empty playground, because in a town that was an empty canvas, this was one place marked by the boy who stole his heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE END. I hope y'all enjoyed this short venture into absolute fluff.
> 
> ollie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxBCYi55C5g
> 
> p.s. if you read version one of this chapter on tumblr, lol im sorry. it was not my best work. also sorry this is so late, I was on vacation for a bit!


End file.
